Favorite Opening Lines in Novels
Hello everyone!
Today I wanted to talk about opening lines, they might not determine the greatness of the book but they are the first impression we as readers get of any given novel. I am guilty of buying a book because the first line was amazing. So I thought it would be a good idea to compile a list of some of my favorites. I don’t really have a number or an order in mind so who knows how long this is going to be.
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” - Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
"Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice."- A Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
“The Man in Black fled across the desert, and the Gunslinger followed." - The Gunslinger by Stephen King
"It was a nice day. All the days had been nice. There had been rather more than seven of them so far, and rain hadn't been invented yet. But clouds massing east of Eden suggested that the first thunderstorm was on its way, and it was going to be a big one."- Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
“Once upon a time an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well- Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
“How does one describe Artemis Fowl? Various psychiatrists have tried and failed.”- Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
“Blue Sargent had forgotten how many times she’d been told that she would kill her true love.” –The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.”- Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by JK Rowling
“Look, I didn’t want to be a half-blood.” - The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
“Asha lured the dragon with a story.”- The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli
“There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb and he almost deserved it.”- Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C S Lewis
“It rained toads the day the White Council Came to town”- Summer Knight by Jim Butcher
“The building was on fire, and it wasn’t my fault”- Blood Rites by Jim Butcher
“There’s something haunting about a body touched by magic” -Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin
“I have a heart for every year I’ve been alive.”- To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
"Joost had two problems: the moon and his mustache." - Six of Crows by Leigh Berdugo
"This is the file that almost killed me, Director." - Illumine by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman
“Kell wore a very peculiar coat” - A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab
“I placed my thumb and forefinger on the icy flesh, spreading it taut above the breastbone as Uncle had shown me.”- Stalking Jack the Ripper by Keri Maniscalco
“Far Out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun.”- A Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Addams
A bonus line for you for a book that is releasing at the end of February
“They never found a body of the first and only boy who broke my heart.”- The Shadows Between Us by Tracia Levonseller
So here we are. Some of my favorite opening lines in novels. Per usual with me, there is no rhyme or reason to the order. I hope you enjoyed those as much as I did. And I hope you read at least one book from this list simply because of the opening line. Join me on the side of falling victim to good openings. I will make cookies.
Love you all.
Anna
